Letters to the Editor

‘Spitzer's Straddle'

Although The New York Sun claims small class sizes are not important ["Spitzer's Straddle," Editorial, September 5, 2006], the very schools it champions — private schools and charters, in particular — actively market themselves as having smaller classes than New York City's public schools.

In fact, the common dominator in nearly every news story on charter schools is that parents are attracted to them because of the smaller classes.

So why is it that parents, teachers, and educational advocates who want to significantly reduce class sizes in all public schools are criticized? Why the double standard?

We want qualified teachers, a safe environment, and small classes for every single one of the 1.1 million children in New York City's public schools. They deserve nothing less.

RANDI WEINGARTEN
President
United Federation of Teachers
New York, N.Y.